Slang for "plane"

[GG]

Any slang words that might be used for fighter aircraft using
propellers, say WWII? Or any propeller-driven small planes?

Would "buzzer" be a reasonable one?

Thanks.

[Derek Turner]

On Thu, 02 Aug 2012 10:46:14 -0400, GG wrote:

> Any slang words that might be used for fighter aircraft using
> propellers, say WWII? Or any propeller-driven small planes?

'kite'? (RAF slang)

>
> Would "buzzer" be a reasonable one?

No

[GG]

Derek Turner wrote:
> On Thu, 02 Aug 2012 10:46:14 -0400, GG wrote:
>
>> Any slang words that might be used for fighter aircraft using
>> propellers, say WWII? Or any propeller-driven small planes?
>
> 'kite'? (RAF slang)

Indeed:

[
The Flyer: British Culture and the Royal Air Force 1939-1945
Martin Francis - 2011 - 288 pages

A 'kite' was revealed to be an aircraft, a 'sparks' a radio operator, a
'popsie' a young woman, a 'brolly' was a ... to help the novice reader
comprehend the RAF slang
]

>> Would "buzzer" be a reasonable one?
>
> No

Thanks a lot.

[MC]

In article <jve4pd$nt7$1...@speranza.aioe.org>, GG <not_here@no_where.com>
wrote:

Also "crate." - BrE

--

"If you can, tell me something happy."
- Marybones

[James Hogg]

I have a dictionary of slang that defines "buzzer" as (1) a homosexual
male and (2) a pickpocket.

--
James

[Athel Cornish-Bowden]

Agreed (both of your answers). The Americans doubtless used a different
word from "kite". I think I've heard "baby".


--
athel

[Don Phillipson]

"GG" <not_here@no_where.com> wrote in message
news:jve3rn$lpo$1...@speranza.aioe.org...

> Any slang words that might be used for fighter aircraft using propellers,
> say WWII? Or any propeller-driven small planes?
>
> Would "buzzer" be a reasonable one?

Buzzer is implausible. You will solve this task quicker by
reviewing actual WW2 slang and selecting whichever term
fits your need best. But be aware British and US slang was
different. A British pilot might call his aircraft (large or small)
a kite and an American his ship -- but never vice versa. Before
jet motors came into use, no special term distinguished
propellor-driven aircraft because all were propellor-driven.

--
Don Phillipson
Carlsbad Springs
(Ottawa, Canada)

[Horace LaBadie]

In article <jve3rn$lpo$1...@speranza.aioe.org>, GG <not_here@no_where.com>
wrote:

No.

American flyers called them birds in general.

Every aircraft had its own slang names, however. P-38 might be called
the Droop Snoot. The Dauntless Dive Bomber had several derogatory names,
some derived from its SBD designation (Slow But Deadly). The P-40 was
called the Jug, from its shape. Later versions had other names.

[Iain Archer]

Horace LaBadie wrote on Thu, 2 Aug 2012

And the Fairey Swordfish was known as the Stringbag.
--
Iain Archer

[Robin Bignall]

Brought amusingly to my attention again in the "Beyond the Fringe"
Futile Gesture sketch. At about 6m30 in this.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UwDMwSQv5KY

--
Robin Bignall
(BrE)
Herts, England

[Nick Spalding]

Robin Bignall wrote, in <ejll18d1ca1fmr8ut...@4ax.com>
on Thu, 02 Aug 2012 20:37:15 +0100:

5m30 here.
--
Nick Spalding
BrE/IrE

[Don Phillipson]

"Horace LaBadie" <hwlab...@nospam.highstream.net> wrote in message
news:hwlabadiejr-30FD...@nntp.aioe.org...

> Every aircraft had its own slang names, however. P-38 might be called

> the Droop Snoot. . . . The P-40 was

> called the Jug, from its shape. Later versions had other names.

Correction: the P-47 (Republic Thunderbolt) was called the Jug.
(The P-40 was a Curtiss aircraft, variously named Warhawk,
Kittyhawk, Tomahawk etc.)

[Joe Fineman]

Derek Turner <frd...@cesmail.net> writes:

> On Thu, 02 Aug 2012 10:46:14 -0400, GG wrote:
>
>> Any slang words that might be used for fighter aircraft using
>> propellers, say WWII? Or any propeller-driven small planes?
>
> 'kite'? (RAF slang)

I believe "bus" was also used.
--
--- Joe Fineman jo...@verizon.net

||: Malt does more than Milton can :||
||: To justify God's ways to man. :||

[GordonD]

"Don Phillipson" <e9...@SPAMBLOCK.ncf.ca> wrote in message
news:jvepsk$dok$3...@speranza.aioe.org...

> "Horace LaBadie" <hwlab...@nospam.highstream.net> wrote in message
> news:hwlabadiejr-30FD...@nntp.aioe.org...
>
>> Every aircraft had its own slang names, however. P-38 might be called
>> the Droop Snoot. . . . The P-40 was
>> called the Jug, from its shape. Later versions had other names.
>
> Correction: the P-47 (Republic Thunderbolt) was called the Jug.
> (The P-40 was a Curtiss aircraft, variously named Warhawk,
> Kittyhawk, Tomahawk etc.)

The swing-wing F-111 was belatedly known as the Aardvark. In my opinion this
is a terrible name for a warplane because as we all know, Aardvark never
hurt anybody...
--
Gordon Davie
Edinburgh, Scotland

"Slipped the surly bonds of Earth...to touch the face of God."

[R H Draney]

Nick Spalding filted:

>
>Robin Bignall wrote, in <ejll18d1ca1fmr8ut...@4ax.com>
> on Thu, 02 Aug 2012 20:37:15 +0100:
>

>>Brought amusingly to my attention again in the "Beyond the Fringe"
>>Futile Gesture sketch. At about 6m30 in this.
>>http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UwDMwSQv5KY
>>
>
>5m30 here.

For the future benefit of those posting YouTube links in which the point of
interest is some way into the film clip, one can include a starting point in the
URL, appending first an ampersand, then the offset...for instance, to link to
the above clip but starting at the five-and-a-half-minute mark, post:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UwDMwSQv5KY&t=5m30s

For a starting point within the first minute, seconds alone are sufficient:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UwDMwSQv5KY&t=45s

....r


--
Me? Sarcastic?
Yeah, right.

[Steve Hayes]

On Thu, 2 Aug 2012 12:16:08 -0400, "Don Phillipson" <e9...@SPAMBLOCK.ncf.ca>
wrote:

>Buzzer is implausible. You will solve this task quicker by
>reviewing actual WW2 slang and selecting whichever term
>fits your need best. But be aware British and US slang was
>different. A British pilot might call his aircraft (large or small)
>a kite and an American his ship -- but never vice versa. Before
>jet motors came into use, no special term distinguished
>propellor-driven aircraft because all were propellor-driven.

I just finished reading a novel (The Ansolutist by John Boyne) where the
anachonisms in dialogue were frequent and distracting. It was set in the First
World War and immediately after, and the author had obviously done little or
no research on the topic. One of the more glaring ones was saying that a
couple were "an item".

I recommend that anyone planning to write a historical novel study slang of
the period very carefully, or else try to avoid slang as far as possible.
Reading contemporary novels might be useful for this purpose.


--
Steve Hayes from Tshwane, South Africa
Blog: http://khanya.wordpress.com
E-mail - see web page, or parse: shayes at dunelm full stop org full stop uk

[CDB]

On Aug 2, 5:20 pm, "GordonD" <g.da...@btinternet.com> wrote:
> "Don Phillipson" <e...@SPAMBLOCK.ncf.ca> wrote in message
>
> news:jvepsk$dok$3...@speranza.aioe.org...
>
> > "Horace LaBadie" <hwlabadi...@nospam.highstream.net> wrote in message

> >news:hwlabadiejr-30FD...@nntp.aioe.org...
>
> >> Every aircraft had its own slang names, however. P-38 might be called
> >> the Droop Snoot. . . . The P-40 was
> >> called the Jug, from its shape. Later versions had other names.
>
> > Correction:  the P-47 (Republic Thunderbolt) was called the Jug.
> > (The P-40 was a Curtiss aircraft, variously named Warhawk,
> > Kittyhawk, Tomahawk etc.)
>
> The swing-wing F-111 was belatedly known as the Aardvark. In my opinion this
> is a terrible name for a warplane because as we all know, Aardvark never
> hurt anybody...
> --
> Gordon Davie
> Edinburgh, Scotland
>
> "Slipped the surly bonds of Earth...to touch the face of God."

You are a disgusting man and a credit to your froup.

[GordonD]

"CDB" <belle...@gmail.com> wrote in message
news:91f8da54-72e1-4d99...@8g2000vbx.googlegroups.com...

***

Thank you. I try my best.

[Paul Wolff]

In message <a82jg7...@mid.individual.net>, GordonD
<g.d...@btinternet.com> writes

But whatever you do, don't let that show. Make it look as if your coup
d'�crire was a mere bagatelle which, had you but summoned some effort,
would have been an astonishing tour de force intellectuelle.

(I'm not sure why I went all Frenchified there. Maybe it was the subtle
influence of CDB.)

But at all costs get your attributions right - you have missed out one
quote level, and it's too much trouble for me to put that right.
--
Paul

[GordonD]

"Paul Wolff" <boun...@two.wolff.co.uk> wrote in message
news:AYXdMnJV...@fpwolff.demon.co.uk...

> But at all costs get your attributions right - you have missed out one
> quote level, and it's too much trouble for me to put that right.

I know. When I replied to CDB (in the message to which you replied) the
attribution didn't work properly and as you say it was too much trouble to
put right.

[Robin Bignall]

On Sat, 4 Aug 2012 09:25:14 +0100, "GordonD" <g.d...@btinternet.com>
wrote:

>"Paul Wolff" <boun...@two.wolff.co.uk> wrote in message
>news:AYXdMnJV...@fpwolff.demon.co.uk...
>
>> But at all costs get your attributions right - you have missed out one
>> quote level, and it's too much trouble for me to put that right.
>
>I know. When I replied to CDB (in the message to which you replied) the
>attribution didn't work properly and as you say it was too much trouble to
>put right.

Attenton to dteail; thats' the secreg.

[GG]

Horace LaBadie wrote:
> In article <jve3rn$lpo$1...@speranza.aioe.org>, GG <not_here@no_where.com>
> wrote:
>
>> Any slang words that might be used for fighter aircraft using
>> propellers, say WWII? Or any propeller-driven small planes?
>>
>> Would "buzzer" be a reasonable one?
>>
>> Thanks.
>
> No.
>
> American flyers called them birds in general.

OK, then.

> Every aircraft had its own slang names, however. P-38 might be called
> the Droop Snoot. The Dauntless Dive Bomber had several derogatory names,
> some derived from its SBD designation (Slow But Deadly). The P-40 was
> called the Jug, from its shape. Later versions had other names.

Thanks, everybody.

[CDB]

On Aug 3, 6:38 pm, Paul Wolff <bounc...@two.wolff.co.uk> wrote:
> In message <a82jg7Fag...@mid.individual.net>, GordonD

[the aardvark and the tour de force intellectuelle]

>
> (I'm not sure why I went all Frenchified there. Maybe it was the subtle
> influence of CDB.)
>

What's "subtle"? FAbzorba has emerged from the southern ocean with
the third French Disease of the Soul clenched in his strong white
teeth: it's not Malays at all, it's Chagrin. Just wanted to say.

[a tower of strength intellectual unto his froup]

[Vinny Burgoo]

It was also slang for a Morse signaller.

Speaking of which, I came across 'zogging' in a book about WW2 last week
and have just been googling its etymology. 'Zogging' was airforce slang
for sending Morse by swinging your arm over the side of a string bag -
slow and long for dash, fast and short for a dot. A WW1 sky pilot
supplied the answer:

THE following soliloquy was overheard the other morning from one
of the Royal Corps engaged in the daily task of zogging it off:
"The greatest war the world 'as ever seen! And wot's a Marine
doin'? Cleanin' paint-work!"

(_ Grand Fleet Chaplain's Note Book_, 1916.)

That confused me at first. Was the guffy waving his arms about in
irritation? Or was this a different 'zogging', perhaps related to
'soaking' in some way? No. It seems that _Zog_ was a well-known cleaning
fluid. Slogan: 'Zog it off!' It was particularly efficacious on grubby
paint-work but could also be used on baths, mirrors and china. _Pink
Zog_ brought a sparkle to your silverware. 8d a tin at all good grocer's
and ironmonger's.

Sending Morse by swinging your arm must have looked like you were
polishing the side of your crate.

I think I'll celebrate by squirting a mouldy at some medical comforts.

--
VB

[Mike L]

On Thu, 02 Aug 2012 17:21:08 -0400, Joe Fineman <jo...@verizon.net>
wrote:

>Derek Turner <frd...@cesmail.net> writes:
>
>> On Thu, 02 Aug 2012 10:46:14 -0400, GG wrote:
>>
>>> Any slang words that might be used for fighter aircraft using
>>> propellers, say WWII? Or any propeller-driven small planes?
>>
>> 'kite'? (RAF slang)
>
>I believe "bus" was also used.

Kingsford-Smith, the pioneer Australian airman, called his Fokker
trimotor "the Old Bus", though its public name was "Southern Cross".

--
Mike.

[R H Draney]

Vinny Burgoo filted:

>
>That confused me at first. Was the guffy waving his arms about in
>irritation? Or was this a different 'zogging', perhaps related to
>'soaking' in some way? No. It seems that _Zog_ was a well-known cleaning
>fluid. Slogan: 'Zog it off!' It was particularly efficacious on grubby
>paint-work but could also be used on baths, mirrors and china. _Pink
>Zog_ brought a sparkle to your silverware. 8d a tin at all good grocer's
>and ironmonger's.

And now I have new insight into the name of the giant robot in the movie "Astro
Boy" (which I watched on cable just two nights ago)....

Don't worry, encyclopedia fans...I already know about the king who shot back at
his intended assassins....r

[Vinny Burgoo]

In alt.usage.english, R H Draney wrote:
>Vinny Burgoo filted:

>>That confused me at first. Was the guffy waving his arms about in
>>irritation? Or was this a different 'zogging', perhaps related to
>>'soaking' in some way? No. It seems that _Zog_ was a well-known cleaning
>>fluid. Slogan: 'Zog it off!' It was particularly efficacious on grubby
>>paint-work but could also be used on baths, mirrors and china. _Pink
>>Zog_ brought a sparkle to your silverware. 8d a tin at all good grocer's
>>and ironmonger's.
>
>And now I have new insight into the name of the giant robot in the movie "Astro
>Boy" (which I watched on cable just two nights ago)....

Mmmmm, ham, egg.

>Don't worry, encyclopedia fans...I already know about the king who shot back at
>his intended assassins....r

But have you heard the one about the goalkeeper, the lizards and the BBC
apology?

<http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/celebritynews/9349922/BBC-says-sorry-to-
follower-of-conspiracy-theorist-David-Icke-over-Planet-Zog-claim.html>

(Personally, I'd promote Mr Miller to DG.)

--
VB